Venn Ottery

Living in a idyllic village such as Venn Ottery you often wonder what the life was like in the past. Looking around the village there are a few clues to the past lives of villagers with the church, graveyard, houses and remains of cottages to search, and using the Internet opens a whole new world of information!
I thought others might be interested to hear about the lives of the people who lived here and some of the village goings on. My findings cover 18/ 19th century and are my interpretation of  archive information I have come across.

I started by looking at the census information that is available.
Venn Ottery in the 1800's consisted  mainly of agricultural housing, cottages that were linked to the farms of Elwill, Venn Ottery Barton, Minors and Venn Ottery House( Elliott's farm). Most of the villagers were labourers on these farms, herdsmen, waggoners, blacksmith, and a few women lace makers.
Many old names that you hear in the area are in the census. One that was very dominant was Yelverton. A long standing family in east Devon, that I have traced back to the 1700's. 

The Yelvertons

This family has a long standing run of farming in Venn Ottery, Tipton, Fluxton and metcombe. 

Thomas Yelverton was born in 1811 and lived in Venn Ottery House/ Elliotts farm. At 40 years old ( quite old to get married?), he marries Eliza Patch from West Hill. Together they live in the main Venn Ottery household with 2 house servants, a herdsman, stable boy,and a 12 year old ploughboy.

By 1861 thay have 6 children, including the heir,their eldest son, Thomas. The household is obviously busy with a nursemaid, housemaid, cook, governess, and farm servant. These people are just the ones keeping the house running, Thomas senior is still yeoman of 250 acres  and also employs 6 labourers to run the farming side of the business. I imagine that these labourers would have lived in the cottages running alongside the Venn Ottery road. Most of the original cottages have been demolished and rebuilt in roughly the same areas in the 1900's.  Unfortunately in the census the cottages are never named and just referred to as cottages 1, 2 etc. In 1861 the population in Venn Ottery was 101 with 19 houses.
In 1861, At the age of around 53 years Thomas senior dies and leaves effects of  £ 3.000. Obviously he was doing fairly well for himself. His eldest son Thomas junior takes over the household after having been training in Exminster on a farm owned by a family called  Burringtons. At 18, in the census he is described as a 'gentleman farmer/ farm pupil'. An 18 th century apprentice! Not long after he marries the Burringtons daughter Mary Ann and making their home at Venn Ottery Barton they go on to have 9 children, including yet another son called ,you guessed it, Thomas!

Thomas 's widowed mother, Eliza, continues to live in Venn Ottery house /Elliott's Farm with another of her sons James as the head of the household with 4 of her other children, a housekeeper, housemaid and a groom!

Thomas is very much the country sportsman ( as was his father) partaking in hunting and shooting. The east devon hunt was based in Venn Ottery in his fathers time. Thomas hunted regularly and bred horses for  showing,hunting, racing and polo. They showed  their horses in agricultural shows all over the south west. The family were held in very high regard within these circles.
Thomas continues to run the farm at Venn Ottery Barton after his wife dies in 1910. 
In 1911 the farm is being worked by Thomas and 4 of of his children, they all have assigned jobs and there appears to be no more house help. Times have changed, I guess with war looming and  less money , things have to be sacrificed and everyone has to pull together . 3 of his sons join the military to fight in the great war.
After losing his hearing he moves in with his daughter in Exeter.
He dies in 1919 and the family have a grave in  Venn Ottery church yard under the yew tree .